Indian casino expanding

Friday, Aug. 16, 2002 | 11:14 a.m.

MAYETTA, Kan. -- Harrah's Prairie Band Casino plans a $55 million expansion with the goal of becoming a resort destination.

"It's going to continue to enhance the economic development of northeast Kansas," said Patrick J. Browne, senior vice president and general manager of the Topeka-area casino.

The expansion will add 198 hotel rooms, Browne said, tripling the current capacity. It also will include a 12,000-square-foot convention center and a new steakhouse restaurant seating 120.

About 100 jobs will be created, he said.

The casino, which opened in January 1998, drew nearly 1.5 million people in 2001, and about 1.6 million people are projected to visit this year, Browne said.

By comparison, the Wichita Zoo, Kansas' second-most popular tourist attraction, draws slightly more than 400,000 people annually.

Browne said the expansion wasn't designed to counter the possibility that slot machines might be added to Kansas' horse and dog racetracks. Such a proposal passed the Kansas House last session but died in a Senate committee.

"This project has truly come about from customer loyalty and retention and them really telling us, 'We love coming here. We love your customer service. And here's some things that would even make it better,"' he said. "It's less about what happens competitively, because that is an unknown. We don't control that."

The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation contracts with Las Vegas-based Harrah's Entertainment Inc. to run its casino.